This Is My Primitive Tribe-Chapter 478: 282: The Endless Locust Plague
Capítulo 478: Chapter 282: The Endless Locust Plague
“Boom!”
With a dull thud, the large Tang Yuan landed.
Even though it tried its best to spread its wings to lessen the noise upon landing, the ground still had two deep, large holes.
They were made by Tang Yuan’s claws.
“Hahaha, Leader Xuan, you look stronger than ever after such a long time!”
Shan Jia promptly walked to the entrance to welcome him, praising Jiang Xuan even before reaching him.
Jiang Xuan leapt off Tang Yuan’s back, landing lightly on the ground, and walked toward Shan Jia.
He was nineteen years old this year, reached the level of a Five-Color Warrior, tall and burly, looking quite imposing.
“Leader Shan Jia, long time no see.” Jiang Xuan smiled.
He had visited the Mountain Turtle Tribe countless times; it felt as familiar as home, making him feel relaxed upon landing.
“Leader Xuan, you’ve come at the perfect time. Our tribe’s warriors just harvested some fresh ice lotus today. Come, I’ll take you to taste them.”
“Sure.”
The two walked shoulder to shoulder, chatting as they headed into the tribe. The people of the Mountain Turtle Tribe were very familiar with Jiang Xuan, and some warriors even greeted him; Jiang Xuan responded to them one by one.
Soon after, they arrived at Shan Jia’s house.
Apart from the hearth at the entrance, a set of wooden furniture was especially eye-catching. It was a gift from the Vine Tribe to the Mountain Turtle Tribe, a total of two sets: one for the Witch and one for the leader.
After Jiang Xuan sat on a chair, Shan Jia immediately placed some cleaned ice lotus on the table, inviting Jiang Xuan to eat freely. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚
Jiang Xuan casually picked up a piece of ice lotus, bit into it, and its cool sweetness refreshed him.
On a hot summer day, to eat something like this was truly a pleasure.
Compared to the Vine Tribe’s transplanted ice lotus, it lacked this cooling effect, the taste was inferior, lacking the refreshing iciness.
Jiang Xuan asked in surprise, “Was this dug from the old place where the Beaver Tribe lived?”
Shan Jia replied honestly, “That’s right. However, our warriors are not as good at diving as the Beaver Tribe. We can only pull up the ice lotus, mostly just the top part, rarely retrieving it whole.”
Jiang Xuan took another bite, saying, “That’s a pity; the ice lotus under the mud is larger and sweeter.”
Shan Jia said helplessly, “To eat the ice lotus under the mud, only those large water otters of the Beaver Tribe could probably dig them out.”
Only those large water otters can dig them out?
Jiang Xuan thought carefully, pondering: That’s not necessarily true; many animals are skilled at diving, not just large water otters!
For instance, the Frog Tribe, those giant frogs are very adept at diving; digging ice lotus should be no problem.
Yet, Jiang Xuan wouldn’t say this to Shan Jia. He contemplated that once the Vine Tribe’s territory expanded to the Great Swamp, he definitely wanted to try planting ice lotus there again.
Logically, as long as the environment is similar, the ice lotus should grow the same, without drastically dropping in taste and yield as the Vine Tribe experienced after transplanting.
After finishing a piece of ice lotus, Jiang Xuan decided to set aside this matter temporarily, since he hadn’t come for the ice lotus today.
“Leader Shan Jia, actually, I came this time specifically to bring you news.”
“News?”
“Exactly. Do you know a large swarm of locusts is flying over here right now?”
“Locusts? What are those?”
“They’re like grasshoppers but much more ferocious than the ones we usually see.”
“Oh, grasshoppers…”
Upon hearing grasshoppers, Shan Jia relaxed immediately.
Grasshoppers have an extremely ancient history and are widespread. The tribe members are quite familiar with them.
When tribe members go out hunting, if they encounter large grasshoppers, they would catch them, skewer them on thin sticks, roast, and eat them; they taste quite good.
Seeing Shan Jia’s expression, Jiang Xuan knew he was clueless about the locust plague, thinking it was just some grasshoppers bouncing in the grass, eating leaves.
“Leader Shan Jia, the locusts we’re facing now aren’t like those you’ve seen before. They are overwhelming in numbers, impossible to count, and can devour a whole forest in days.”
“Think about it, if these locusts eat all the plants in the forest, the animals will surely flee too. Where will we hunt then?”
Listening to Jiang Xuan’s serious tone, Shan Jia started taking it seriously but was still somewhat skeptical, asking, “Are they really that formidable?”
“More so than you can imagine. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have traveled such a long distance to specifically warn you.”
Jiang Xuan continued, “Our Vine Tribe has already begun dealing with these locusts, but the Vine Tribe’s strength alone is far from enough; we need help from other tribes.”
“Even your Vine Tribe can’t handle it?”
Shan Jia was taken aback, finally realizing the gravity of the situation.
After all, the nearby tribes already regarded the Vine Tribe as a budding major tribe. If even the Vine Tribe couldn’t handle it, other tribes would stand no chance.
“Chief Shan Jia, it’s useless for me to say more. How about I take you to see it with your own eyes?”
Shan Jia hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
He couldn’t imagine how grasshoppers, which usually seemed harmless and were even considered food, could possess such terrifying destructive power.
Without seeing it for himself, he wouldn’t completely believe it.
“Alright, then please, Chief Shan Jia, come with me once more to the Sparrow Tribe and Unihorn Tribe. I believe they, like you, will want to see the locust plague with their own eyes.”
Shan Jia nodded again. He had lost his appetite for Ice Lotus, nibbled on some beast meat to stave off hunger, then said a few words to the Witch, and left the Mountain Turtle Tribe with Jiang Xuan.
The Sparrow Tribe and Unihorn Tribe weren’t far from the Mountain Turtle Tribe, and Tang Yuan flew quickly. By that evening, the leaders of these two tribes were also persuaded by Jiang Xuan to go see the locusts with him.
Late at night, Tang Yuan carried them back to rest in the forest where Hunting Team One and the breeding team resided.
Early the next morning, at the crack of dawn, Jiang Xuan took the chiefs of the three tribes to climb the tallest tree nearby.
With just one glance, the leaders of the three tribes were left speechless.
In front of them lay a vast expanse of forest where all the green had vanished, leaving only bare trunks and branches in a withered yellow state.
And this was supposed to be midsummer!
“This… this…”
Shan Jia was dumbfounded, at a loss for words.
Jiang Xuan had anticipated their reaction and said calmly, “Keep watching.”
The locusts had a habit of being active during the day and resting at night. At this time, most were still perched on trees, sleeping.
As the sky grew brighter and the sun rose from the east, all the locusts began to wake up.
“Buzz buzz buzz…”
One by one, the locusts woke up, flapping their wings and taking to the air.
Initially, only a small number took flight, but soon, more and more rose, swarming in uncountable numbers.
The locusts, entirely earth-yellow when gathered, resembled a massive cloud of yellow. The mere buzzing of their wings was enough to make one’s scalp tingle.
Once airborne, the locusts swiftly attacked the nearest green plants, so numerous and so quick that it was awe-inspiring.
“Crunch crunch…”
The locusts ferociously devoured leaves, grass, and plant buds. In the blink of an eye, a large tree was riddled with holes, its green leaves completely consumed.
“Gulp…”
Shan Jia swallowed hard and said, “Are these really grasshoppers? This is terrifying.”
The leaders of the Sparrow Tribe and Unihorn Tribe nodded in agreement, their faces tinged with panic, as the scene before them was simply too frightening.
Jiang Xuan said, “You can consider them as mutated grasshoppers. If left unchecked, they will swiftly devour the entire forest around the Great Swamp, and even further beyond.”
“When that happens, how will we survive here?”
Jiang Xuan’s words struck Shan Jia and the others like a heavy hammer on their hearts.
No one could remain indifferent when it concerned their tribe’s survival.
The Unihorn Tribe’s chief hurriedly asked, “Chief Xuan, what should we do?”
Jiang Xuan replied, “Of course, we must unite and collectively fight against these locusts.”
He thought for a moment and added, “Not just our four tribes; the other tribes near the Great Swamp must also unite to confront these locusts. We must eradicate them and prevent them from invading our territory!”
The three chiefs nodded in unison. Having witnessed the horrors of the locust plague, they were resolute in preventing it from occurring in their land.
Immediately, Jiang Xuan discussed feasible methods for exterminating the locusts with them. Once the discussion was over, he promptly sent them back to their respective tribes to organize manpower to combat the locust plague.
Meanwhile, on the Vine Tribe’s side, besides Hunting Team One and the breeding team, more manpower was mobilized to join in the effort to eradicate the locusts.
“Ribbit!”
Two days later, the Frog Tribe was the first to arrive. A large group of giant frogs immediately leaped into the forest, voraciously feasting on those locusts.
Soon, other tribes also arrived one after another, joining in the grand effort to combat the locust plague.
